


The Rescue Mission

by chefke



Series: Kanan and Hera Tidbits [3]
Category: Star Wars: Rebels, kanera
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-22
Updated: 2016-11-06
Packaged: 2018-03-19 03:58:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3595470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chefke/pseuds/chefke
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hera is kidnapped by an unknown group who seeks information about the Fulcrum. Meanwhile Kanan rushes to save her.<br/>So this was the first actual Fanfic I ever wrote and I decided to re-write it! There were originally 5 chapters! There will be six!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by next to me emelie sanders

Hera could taste her own blood freely running down her throat. She was steadily coughing up blood. She definitely had a broken rib or two. She currently couldn't feel either of her thumbs but she wasn't worried about that, thumbs could be reset and teeth and nails could be replaced. The part that actually worried her was that she had no idea who was doing this to her. She wasn't even sure who to blame.

Hacking up more blood she groggily looked up at her captor. His face was hidden under a black ragged hood. At least she thought it was a he. His breathing patterns indicated he was at least two hundred and fifty pounds and he was easily six feet three, at least. He had just taken a break from breaking her fingers one by one. She had no idea how long she had been held captive. She had not been let out of her cell, even to relieve herself. It could have been weeks or days, she wasn't sure. He knew what he was doing. In addition to her black windowless room, he had specifically kept her schedule so erratic, that she couldn't tell time.

She heard the door humm shut as he left. She felt herself slump against the chair. Breathing was beginning to hurt. She had been on a simple routine mission. Pickup and drop off. She had been complaining about Kanan's drinking habits. They picked up every year gradually around the time that Order 66 was given. She knew she should be more tolerable considering all he had been through. But there was more at stake than his past and he needed to swim in the new world or he would drown in the old one. Order 66 was in a week so naturally he had a shot of fire whiskey every hour.

She had tolerated it for two days before she broke. That morning she had given him a serious speech about his drinking habits and general lack of decorum. He just blinked at her and nodded passively when she had spoken to him, like he wasn't listening or didn't care what she had been saying.

She would have loved to have stayed and yelled but they had a meet. She asked him if he needed to stay behind but he declined, saying he was fine. Like his drinking was fine, or the guy who cut him off who now had a broken arm and nose was fine. With an exasperated sigh she grabbed her gear and loaded up the Phantom. He followed silently sitting in the co-pilots chair while she loaded everything.

When she was done loading the ship she found him staring off at the sky in his seat. He looked peaceful and not for the first time she noticed how handsome he was. She sighed to herself. Handsome and damaged beyond repair, but weren't they all? That was what the Empire had done to everyone, damaged them to the point of not wanting to live anymore. Sometimes she wondered why he bothered getting up in the morning. He had never said anything but based off of his nightmares he had probably witnessed the massacre of the Jedi in their temple on Coruscant. He must have been a little boy then.

She slid into her seat her heart aching for the little boy whose world was destroyed that day and for the man who wasn't sure how to deal with the ugly decrepit world that had been left in it's place.

'Punching planetary coordinates. It's a Cantina called The Dead Taris.' She called to Chopper. She had just finished plugging the coordinates when he spoke up.

'I've heard of it. Seedy dark place. Not somewhere the Empire would even send foot soldiers.' She hummed thoughtfully in response.

That was good news. It meant the Empire was one less person they had to look out for. They flew in silence until they reached a small hangar bay. She unstrapped her safety harness and checked her blaster.

'Ready?' He nodded in response. She left Chopper on the ship despite his requests to come along. She smiled and patted his head.

'Please Chop?' He whistled his approval and hurried back into the Phantom. The two set off at a quick pace. He was studiously avoiding eye contact with her and staring at the floor as they walked down the crowded streets. She let the topic go because one of them had to make sure they weren't gunned down and killed in broad daylight.

Once they reached the hazy bar they split up to do a nonchalant sweep. Kanan nodded and they both sat down at the edge of the bar. Kanan immediately ordered two drinks. Hera fumed.

'Really?' We just spoke about-' A hooded figure bumped into her shoulder and a data drive was slipped into her coveralls.

She ignored Kanan and glanced at the data as he drained his glass and ordered another. She felt her throat go dry and her heart quicken. This couldn't be real. This... thing... it could destroy planets.

Hell, she needed a drink. Kanan who had been peering over her shoulder drained his glass and ordered a third.

'A third really? Do you plan on walking out of here? I thought you had this under control?!' She pocketed the tablet.

'One slip up is all it takes! This problem could endanger everything we've worked for. You need to get this under control. Ugh... Chop was right I should've left you on the ship.'

'Kanan are you even listening? I swear sometimes I-'

Her speech had been broken up because he noticed a tail.

The sound of the door caused her to look up. Her captor was back. She felt a sharp pain as he inserted a needle in her arm. She watched as he pumped dark yellow liquids into her arm. She felt her whole body shake in pain. She bit down hard so she wouldn't scream.

'You will give up your informant Rebel.' He sat in a chair calmly and watched her as she finally submitted to her screams. She screamed until only hot air came out of her lungs and she fell into a deep dark black abyss.


	2. Chapter 2

Kanan looked up from his seat. His contact was late. He was growing less and less patient. He was currently biting down on his tongue in effort not to bolt out of his chair and run to the Ghost. He tasted his own blood in his mouth. Hera was being tortured. He could feel it through the force. It was maddening. He felt like a padawan again. He had been helpless to stop Hera from being taken, like he had been helpless with Master Bilaba.

He would not be helpless again now. He would save her. But how had it spiraled so far out of control? What happened?

He was going over the data he had on the attackers. There wasn't much.

They had been in a Cantina with their new information that the Fulcrum had sent them to retrieve. It had been plans for some super ship. Kanan had glimpsed the plans in the Cantina over Hera's shoulder. If they were real he doubted anything the two of them would do would help anyone. There would be a lot of death, everywhere.

He had been thinking about the gruesome details while he was nursing a virgin something drink he had ordered. He looked up to see that Hera was giving him a 'talk' and looked pretty annoyed that he wasn't listening. He was about to answer when he noticed two hooded people in the corner of the cantina. He remembered the hoods from their drop off site. He silenced her with a kick under the table.

'We're being followed. Your 6 o'clock.' Hera's eyes became alert. Her eyes were searching his, looking for something.

'We need to get back to the ship, quickly. Can you make it?'

'Why wouldn't I be able to make it?' She looked pointedly at his drink. 'Really? Hera. We talked about this. I have it under control.'

She sighed and rubbed her temples.

'I can't right now. You aren't more important than the galaxy.'

'I didn't say I was!' He replied angrily. She was starting to annoy him.

'You- Shit. They're closing in.' She stood abruptly.

'Move. Now.'

Kanan looked up and used the force to trip two passing rival bounty hunters into each other. All living hell broke loose. Hera had anticipated his move and was standing in front of him on her way to the door, Kanan at her heels. The door slid shut behind them with blood spewing everywhere, shouts, and fire power littering the Cantina.

The two walked quickly in silence from the Cantina towards the hangar bay. They needed to get out and quickly. They scurried into the main hangar hub relieved. It didn't last long.

They had barely made it from the door to the checkout kiosk when they were sprayed with bullet fire. Law Enforcement either fled or hid and civilians ran screaming. Kanan was already firing back while Hera took cover behind a trash bin. Kanan felt a ripple in the force as a silver oblong ship descended directly above Hera.

Kanan turned and ran towards Hera but he was cut off by a pepper of fireshots. He ducked behind several shipping containers and returned fire. Hera was firing back but she was pinned. Her back was at a wall and she was surrounded. She couldn't even go up. He shouted in the comms at Chopper.

He yelled her name and she turned towards him. He motioned toward the ship rapidly descending towards her. She looked up at him and then back to the ship. He watched her as they both came to the same realization. He shouted but she shook her head mutely. She calmly unclipped her data pad and shot four rounds at the edge mid throw giving it the momentum it needed to land at his feet.

There was a break in the firing and he tried to move closer to her. It wasn't close enough though. He watched her get shot with enough tranquilizers to take down a bantha. As she fell he saw something silver shoot from her hands before his feet. He bent down to pick up the data chip she used to contact Fulcrum and her Comm. She knew she was done for. These people were professionals.

He looked up as a cloaked figure bent down and picked up Hera's limp form. It was sickening. The hands were definitly human. They trailed up her body making Kanan want to vomit. His fingers trailed up her face and then backhanded her. He was ensuring she was out. She didn't move as her head ricocheted off the ground. She was down. Hera was down.

He felt anger course through his body causing his hands to shake and things to explode around him. The robed figure barely seemed to notice. He lifted her over his shoulder and climbed up the ramp bringing Hera aboard his ship. Kanan recorded as much as he could. He could hear Chopper frusterated yells in his comm and in Hera's small comm clutched tightly in his hand.

He wanted to pull out his concealed lightsaber and attack. She would never forgive him though, even in death. He needed to get the data chip from Fulcrum to the contact before the deadline. Hera would be furious if he missed it. If- When he got her back she would never forgive him of he missed it. Especially not with what he saw on it.

He spent most of his life fighting, running, and hiding. He had never been able to afford the luxury of sleep more than two hours at a time. He had never been anything more than just surviving. He eventually forgot what it meant to be comfortable. With Hera he could wake up without feeling the deaths of his entire species every morning when he woke. And now he was forced to sit and watch his peace, his center be flown off unconscious in an unidentified ship knowing he would have to leave her to deliver the plans to the contact.

The contact slid across from him. He took a moment to identify her. Now that she was sitting he could see expensive shoes beneath the ratty snelly robe. It covered all of her features save two escaped brown curls. He leaned forward murmuring

'Wookie Poncho' and tucked the two curls behind Senator Organa's wife's ear.

She was even more beautiful than Kanan remembered. He had seen her when he was young at the temple. She had always stopped and smiled at the padawans, whereas most politicians pretended they didn't exist. She wasn't supposed to be the contact which meant Fulcrum knew Hera had been taken.

He handed her the drive under the table. Senator Organa's wife should be home with her little girl not making seedy exchanges in dingy dives on core worlds. She stared at him for several seconds waiting for him to speak. He said nothing. He couldn't. He was too raw right now. He wasn't sure what would come out. She was about to stand up when she paused.

'We have everyone looking for her, Mr. Jarrus. We'll get Hera back. I swear.' She smiled kindly. One of the only kind living faces from his youth that he remembered. He nodded mutely and she departed. He took the time to follow her till she was safely on her ship and flew safely out of the area, then he radioed Chop.

Time to catch these Fuckers.

 


	3. Chapter 3

Hera felt the feelings in her fingers and toes slowly start to return. That meant the questions would start again.

'Who told you about the chip?'

'Where is the chip?'

'We will find your friend.'

'Tell ME where to find him NOW!'

His words were coming and going as she slipped in and out of consciousness.

She had denied all their questions feigning stupidity. She kept repeating that she had no companion and she didn't know what data chip they were talking about. She silently prayed Kanan had run and delivered the data chip to Fulcrum's contact. She needed him to complete the mission. She cried out in pain as he changed torture methods.

When the pain was too hard to bear she retreated to that dream she had too often of her and Kanan. In her dream there was no rebellion and no danger. It was just him and her and the Ghost. They wore white billowy robes and Kanan always wore his lightsaber proudly on his robe. He was proud of who he was and she was proud of him. Together they would resolve inter-planetary conflicts. Together as a team they were inseparable and unstoppable. When they were done saving the Galaxy they would just fly together and spend their time together discovering the galaxy and new species. Always protecting while being together.

She sighed as she realized how many problems there were with her dream. Really it was hard to find anything that was possible. For starters; Kanan would never wear white, he hates white. But even if there never was an Empire, if the Republic had never fallen to a greedy monster, her dream would still never come true. Kanan would have been a Jedi and they never would have met. Even if the Jedi came to help Ryloth that would have been it. They would come and then leave. No Kanan. No witty remarks. No innocent flirting. No deep emerald eyes that could pierce your very soul. No kind hand to help you up when you've fallen under a machine you're fixing.

But was that what she wanted, to just have him around? She had grown accustomed to his presence like she had grown accustomed to Chop. This was different though. Chop was a... well, he was a droid and as much as she treated him like family and a sentient being. He wasn't. She herself was affected by Kanan's mood swings and it was unsettling. She grumbled when he was sad and soared when he was happy. She knew deep down what it meant and it terrified her. It was probably why she was so harsh with him recently. She remembered the one time he had gone undercover and how she had not slept for the entirety of his mission. It wasn't just worry. It was as if she was missing a limb. She felt her mind buckle at it's proverbial knees as her mind and heart finally came to the same conclusion.

Shit.

It might just be a good thing she isn't going to make it out of here. These days she was content with just sleeping in the same ship as him. It was better than the alternative, but what was she supposed to do when it got too hard? When she made herself miserable with want and desire? Not just physical desire, she wasn't an animal. The desire for a family, for children, for everything her father drilled in her head she had to distant herself from, to protect her obviously. To protect Ryloth, always Ryloth first. She sighed as she imagined little green skinned humanoids with headtails and little lightsabers dangling off of Kanan's shoulders. Her tears broke. Maybe in another life. A better one.

She breathed heavily. At least she was going first. She didn't know if she could handle watching him fall. How had she fallen so fast?

'Ready to give up twiilek?' Her captors cold voice was back. She could see him smiling at her tears. He thought they were for his pointless torture. She was the daughter of the liberator of Ryloth. She was able to withstand torture by the age of seven. He was going to need more than pliers and a half decent medicated pain torture.

'I don't know why you are holding me.' She said innocently. 'I have done nothing wrong, I am a merchant. I was traveling with my wares when I was attacked without provic-' His high pitched laugh cut her off. She wanted to raise her head to meet his eyes but she was too weak to lift her head. She wasn't going to last much longer. It was just physical pain. She could handle that. She had always been able to handle that. It was why she knew the Fulcrum's secret identity, when so many other's did not.

'If you're so innocent, why don't you exist? There isn't a record of you anywhere, even merchants have records  _twiilek_.' He ran a long nail across her cheek. His hands were black with red lines threading up the sides. It was as if someone had carved into his skin.

'I think you're more special than you appear. I am going to find out why and what your hiding. Lucky for you though, we are moving you to a bigger ship. I have more... effective tools there.' He smiled at her and walked out of the room this time he left on the lights. This time he could see his boots and the design on the hallway. She felt the breath halt in her throat.

 

The Inquisition.

 

Fulcrum had warned her about them. They could force their way into your mind. She felt her body quake in fear. Her capture must have been a novice or a scout or he would have broken her. She closed her eyes and silently prayed for Kanan. She was terrified. Terrified she would accidentally give up secrets. Fulcrum's secret. Kanan's secret. She stopped herself, making a fist and digging her nails so hard into her palm she bled. No. She would not betray her friends, her family. She would not give up Kanan or Fulcrum. She would die first. She would make sure of it. She would need to find a way to escape or... die during the move, there was no other option. She couldn't reveal what she knew. She wouldn't. The Rebellion and Kanan's life would depend on it.

 

She needed him to live. They didn't know it yet, but the Rebellion needed him as much as he needed them.

 


	4. Chapter 4

Kanan spent the last eleven hours hacking, browsing, coercing, and using force suggestion on anything that got in his way of finding Hera. The hooded figures were literally anonymous. No one knew anything to tell and those that did were to scared to say anything. He slammed the door on a dusty hut as he sprinted into a closed racing arena office. He found out from a Rodian at a Cantina that there was a Hutt named Rotta living locally on the planet who ran some sort of racing track. He knew everything and everyone.

He had accepted payment prior for the ship information and details but as soon as he saw the holo information of the ship, attackers, and weapons he froze. He shoved the credits back at Kanan and stammered at him to leave. This filled Kanan with dread immediately. What Hutt would turn down money?

'I need the answer Hutt!' He shouted as Rotta tried to push him towards the door.

'Not them... Get out! Stop asking questions and get out! Tell no one you were here and what you asked me about! I'm a Hutt... I... I... know people.' He whispered in a frightened monotone.

'I can't. They took her-'

'A woman? It's always about women with you humanoids. Consider her dead, if she's  _lucky_.' He looked at him knowingly. He wasn't sure what made him crack, the innuendo towards the Empire's prisoner's mysteriously being sold into sex slavery or the fact that it was a possibility that Hera was actually dead. His fists slammed into the wall hard enough to make it crack. He wasn't sure what happened to his face but he felt rage course through his body, an unexplainable and uncontainable rage. The once domineering Hutt shrank back in fear.

'Please. There are plenty of women, they're replaceable. I fear for my life, which is not replaceable.' He babbled, terror and yellow irises reflected in his eyes.

He wasn't even conscience of what he was doing. He raised one hand towards the cowering Hutt feeling his voice go thick and his eyes sting.

'You will tell me what I want to know, Hutt.' The Hutt's eyes widened in fear.

'No' He breathed comprehension dawning on his face. A force sensitive. He wouldn't have a choice. He struggled to keep the force sensitive out of his thoughts.

Kanan pushed harder, his body visibly shaking. This was stupid. He was calling on an ancient power he had long ago abandoned and which he probably had no right using in a desperate attempt to get the women he loved back. But, this information would save Hera. Hera was the forefront of the rebellion and that rebellion was saving countless lives and species. One person's privacy was worth that, wasn't it? He wasn't really hurting him. It was all in his head. More determined than before, he stretched his fingers and tried again.

'You will tell me everything I need to know.' He saw the Hutt begin to shake out of fear or exertion; he wasn't sure. He was going to collapse, probably have a heart attack. It would probably be less painful to be shot through the heart he thought bemusedly.

Bilaba. Like Bilaba had been shot.

Oh, fuck! What the hell was he doing?! He dropped the wheezing Hutt to the ground and threw himself backwards. His eyes stopped burning immediately. Rotta shivered with what looked like a chill, his hide turning to an odd grey color. He had lifted the entire damn thing up against the wall with his mind. He was tired, tired from the lack of sleep, from his terrible mistake, and tired of not having Hera. He needed her. She grounded him, like Master Bilaba had.

Unbidden, his mind had started to chant on it's own.

_There is no emotion, there is peace._

_There is no ignorance, there is knowledge._

_There is no passion, there is serenity._

_There is no chaos, there is harmony._

_There is no death, there is the **Force**._

'I... I...' He stammered. His cheeks were red with shame. He couldn't meet the Hutt's eyes. Bilaba would have been ashamed with him. He was ashamed of him. He didn't deserve the curse that was the force. He didn't deserve any of this. But... without the force he never would have met Hera. She would have died on Gorse under a pile of rubble as the Empire claimed a natural disaster or Rebels. He probably wouldn't have even noticed the story in the news column and would have continued about his day. He needed to find Hera. He was spiraling out of control. He needed his center. His calm. His Hera.

'I'm sorry. You'll never hear from me again.' He whispered. He turned to leave. Rotta wheezing and shivering on the floor. He wanted to help him but he had already done enough damage here today.

'Inquisition Requisition Ship.' Rotta wheezed.

'What?'

'It's an Inquisition Requisition Ship. That thing is probably... headed to Mustafar... for further questioning... or or back here to dump the body...' He stuttered trying to regain his composure. He looked up at him suddenly with eyes of steel. 'You owe me Jedi boy.' Kanan nodded at the door and turned to leave. Curiosity and self loathing made him freeze.

'Why?' He whispered still not meeting Rotta's eyes. 'You could report me. Make millions. Galaxies knows I deserve it.' Rotta grumbled still trying to right himself. Kanan had to dig his nails in his palm to stop himself from going near the furious hutt.

'One of your kind, a Togrutan saved my life when I was little, without her I would be dead. She died in the Purge. This is my debt to her fulfilled. You still owe me because when the Inquisition does come after me I want to be protected. Protected by a Jedi. They haven't broken a promise on me in the past and I'm willing to bet they won't now.'

'I'm no Jedi.'

'Not from where I'm laying pony boy. Go, if you plan on saving your girl.' There was a glimmer of what look suspiciously like ill-covered respect in his eyes. A look from a safe and cultured past long forgotten. A time when planets had a voice and people weren't scared if every night would be there last. A time before the Sith.

Kanan ran. He never ran faster in his life. He debriefed Chopper on the way. Chopper bleeped nervously about how he  _obtained_ the information. He warned him to stay on mission, Hera's life was in danger. Chopper prepped the Ship and he was already hovering in the air when Kanan emerged through the outcropping where they hid the Ghost. He had to jump to reach the ship, a jump no human would have made. He grimaced as he sprinted into the ship closing the exit behind him, just another sharp reminder of who and what he was. He ran into the co-pilots seat and strapped in. Chopper was piloting from a station behind him. Neither would sit in Hera's seat. That seat belonged to their Ship's Captain.

Chopper managed to identify two ships that were within his search parameters and part of the I.R.P. They were both listed as mundane ships. There was literally nothing that screamed Government run military terrorist group. They didn't use any government codes or clearances and all their programming and tech was next gen. They wouldn't be able to hack it, he'd be going in blind. He felt his throat go dry. He didn't have a hope in hell.

The two were in the solar system; each at opposite ends. One was listed as a decomissioned medic station and the other was an oil freighter.

The oil freighter was relatively closer to him. Since, he could barely still sense Hera he set coordinates for the 'oil freighter.' He wouldn't be able to sense her if she was so far. As it was he shouldn't be able to sense her at all. Only force sensitives with intimate relationships could sense each other like a spouse or master and padawan. They weren't close. Hell, she barely tolerated him.

He had chopper gear up the guns, check that the medbay was prepped, and run ship diagnostics as he prepared his weapons cache while they were using lightspeed. One hour. One hour of travelling and then he would destroy anything that got between him and Hera.

He finished arranging his weapons and sat down to organize his thoughts. He was actually meditating but he wasn't ready to call it that yet. As his mind became one with the force he felt as if the force was warning him, or maybe begging him? It was hard to understand. He opened his eyes and rubbed them. Chopper looking at him inquisitively. He started to beep.

_Can you feel her? Is she alive?_

He froze. She was alive, but he could barely sense her. That wasn't possible! The connection should have been getting stronger... Cold reasoning dumped onto him like a freezing bath in middle of Tattoine's desert.

Shit. A decomissioned medic center would have all the tools they needed for torture. It was large enough to hide multiple prisoners and it was so far out that no one would investigate it. He cursed as he ran to the Nav computer and reprogrammed the coordinates. The abrupt turn of the ship caused a tantrum from Chopper who was just as concerned as he, if not more. The ship whined with the abuse and the Hyperspace generator spluttered at the new coordinates but the ship took it as if it knew the stakes.

He double checked the new coordinates in fury taking over his body. The estimated time of arrival was four hours. He felt what little cool he had slide. Where was their help?! Fulcrum already knew Hera had been taken. Why was Fulcrum not helping?! After everything they had been through! Fulcrum hadn't responded to any of his hails or calls and he couldn't just show up at their meet spots. He didn't have the time and he didn't know them. He had to do somethi-

_Kanan. They're going to move me. I won't be able to resist the torture there. I won't tell them about you. I'll find a way. I'll-_

_It's okay Hera, I'm coming._

_I won't tell them Kanan, I swear._

_If it keeps you alive, do it._

_No! I'd die first. Kanan I-_

Her thoughts became incoherent as her torture resumed. Her screams ricocheted in his mind causing him to drop to his hands and knees, tears pooling in his outstretched hands as he screamed for her and she him.

_Kanan_

_No. I'll tell you nothing_

_No._

_No._

_Nothing. You'll get No-_

Her screams were agonizing, clawing under his skin. He begged for everything and anything in the Universe to stop her pain. He begged the Universe to let him take her pain. He cried out till his voice was raspy and ached from use.

_Help me Kanan._

_Kanan._

_Please. Kanan._

_Please. I love-_

Blackness. She had passed out.

Her screeches pierced every fiber of his being. He felt his skin crawl as his fist connected with a wall panel. He felt the metal buckle under him and his fist bruise. He needed pain. Pain was good. It would keep him alert. He had to find Hera before it was too late.

_Hera! Where are you?_

He was screaming into an empty void. She was still unconscious. He needed to get to her before they caused irreparable damage.

He calculated an hour to arrival. He called Chopper and the two made several battle strategies. He hid the data chip in Chopper's memory bank and attached his lightsaber and blaster to his leg. Then he sat down in front of the hatch and meditated again. Not because it was the Jedi thing to do, but because he needed to calm himself. He needed a clear head to do this and may the Galaxies help anyone who got in his way.

They pulled out of hyperspace and he could see the Medic Center. It was attached to a tall platform with tall grey spiderey edges where ships attached themselves. The whole ship was lined with observatory decks. It looked like it was from the clone wars, it probably was.

He sighed. He would not let them take her. He had already lost too much to evil. He would not loose Hera. Especially not today, of all days not today.

He stood up shakely barely registering that Chopper was helping him up and handing him his backup gun. Chopper asked him if he was okay, if he was ready. He shook his body and nodded.

'Let's bring Hera home, Chop.' And he walked down the ramp onto the station.

He felt her presence all around him. He was wrapped in her, it made it hard to find her. He disembarked quickly getting rid of every droid in the hangar with his blaster. He sidled up by the Data Console and downloaded the specs of the ship. He also connected Chopper totheir mainframe and jammed all transmissions. He checked the video feed for patrolling officers. Four. He could take four. He would have too. He didn't have time for mistakes. Not today.

He rushed down the hall and watched as the guards began changing shifts. He slipped by them unnoticed. He quickly located the cell block from a secondary data terminal. It was packed with petty criminals. Surely not where you would put someone you went to such great lengths to capture?

He studied the map again. There was a small room next to the engine room that was using a lot of power and that had a pass key protected video feed and multi-door unit. There were at least thirty feeds in there. He knew where she was now he just needed a diversion.


	5. Chapter 5

_'Pappa!' Hera had been chasing her semi built droid around in circles under the doting watchful eyes of her father when the shouting had started. All at once there were loud noises and bright lights that filled Hera's vision and sight. She could only hear a loud ringing in her small terrified ears. Pieces of ground were exploding all around her and she could see her friends and Rylothian soldiers laying unnaturally still. Hera remembered thinking that they looked like they were sleeping very uncomfortably, some with their eyes open. It had been the first time she had seen the grisly death that war provided. She turned to look for her father when the_ _ground began to move around her. She remembered one of the Rylothian school teachers reaching his arms out for her. She could see his mouth wording her name as she tumbled backwards but all she could hear was the loud ringing as she fell backwards into darkness._

_Hera woke up and looked around her. It was dark and cold and her feet were wet with something odd and thick and sticky. She could feel her head pound and her fingers shake. Where was she? She was about to call out for her Pappa when she heard methodical clicking of boots. Rylothians did not march in uniformed calculated footfalls. The Separatists did. She immediately crunched herself into a small ball and pushed herself deep into a crevice against the wall. She could feel under the crevice was a small crawl space. She looked back for the noise and getting on her knees she quickly crawled into the small tunnel space. The further she crawled the softer the footfalls got. She kept crawling until she put her right hand down on what she thought would be the ground and she fell. She remembered falling and having enough time to_ _calmly_ _think of her Pappa. Where was he? Was he safe? The Separatists must have attacked like he had said they would; if only she could have warned him._

_She landed face down with her arm underneath her body. There was a resounding crunch echoing through the darkness. She tried to look around her but it was too dark. The darkness was crippling. It was so dark it made it hard for her to breathe let alone move. She felt a wall behind her and slowly pushed herself up against it. She sobbed quietly. Where was her Pappa? He always caught her when she fell. Always. He was like lightening in the sky. If she tripped or fell or was pushed, he always caught her as quick as lightening. She sobbed some more. Where was her P_ _apa? Was he going to leave for the great skies like her Mother had at the start of the Clone War? Her body shook violently at the thought. Her Pappa was all she had left in the Galaxy. War was cruel to families._

_She cried for some time. She thought quietly of all the hiding places she could go. She could hide under the floorboards in their kitchen, or behind the fruit sellers large baskets, or inside of the Ryloth Summer tree. Sometimes Pappa would hide too, in the old tunnels under their Village. Her tears stopped immediately. What if Papa was in the tunnels like she was? She thought happily. She pulled herself upright smiling and then she froze terror holding her body captive._

_What if her Pappa was in the tunnels? She had heard Separatist droids! What if Pappa did't know that the Separatists were in the tunnels? She needed to warn Pappa! She remembered scrabbling down the tunnels aimlessly with one arm on the wall so she could at least stay in one direction. She had only one thing on her mind. She needed to find her Pappa and warn him._

_She was never able to tell how long it took her to finally reach some light but she had never appreciated her eyes until she turned a corner and suddenly there was some light s_ _treaming into her unsuspecting eyes. She cried out at the contact breaking her careful silence. Her hands still sheilding her eyes she felt herself be lifted off the ground. She could hear someone bumbling and holdingher too tight. She cried out again when her arm was moved._

_'My Hera. My little Hera. I thought we lost you.' She opened her eyes immediately._

_'Pappa!' She threw her one good arm around her Pappa. 'The droids Pappa-'_

_'I know my little Hera. It's okay they're above ground. Pappa will keep you safe. I won't let you out of my sight ever again.' She looked at him confusion coloring her small dirty blood covered features. She shook her headtails violently._

_'Pappa! No! That's why I was running! I heard them in the tunnels!' Whatever low talking around her stopped immediately. Her father insisted she have her arm splinted before they continue but she refused. She stood proudly and told them everything she knew down to how many turns she had made with her hand on the wall. Her father stood over her beaming with pride. It was the last day he ever called her Little Hera. That day she became a soldier._

Hera woke up feeling oddly calm. She had accepted that she would die, now she was just going to wait and see what happens. 'All in good time Little Hera.' Her father used to say. He was the reason there was no trace of her. Before she had left his selfish rebellion he wiped all trace of her existance.  _Little Hera_  she mused. She hadn't been called that in years. Kanan had called her that once and she had all but snapped his head off. After she was calm she explained to him it was her father's pet name for her before she became just another soldier to him. The door slid open interrupting her thoughts. Her torturer walked in haughty and tall and overly self confident.

'Awake already Twiilek?' He spat. She snorted at him.

'Given your lack of... cooperation we will be moving you to Mustafar. You will be questioned by the High Inquisitior himself, an honor a twiilek such as yourself doesn't deserve.' He was looking at her as if she was dust beneath his boot. She had to stop herself from laughing. It didn't bother her at all. If she had been human it would have been a different type of torture. One that would likely end up with her mangled body and pregnant. Her being a Twiilek was the best thing that could have happened to her.

'And here I thought you were here for the view.' She laughed. She was going to die she knew that. They were moving her to this High Inquisitior where she would die anyway after lengthy and numerous tortures. She could at least make sure her death was on her terms no matter how grisly and she take as many as the bastards with her as humanely possibly. She could make sure she didn't betray Kanan and the Fulcrum. He sneered at her and pulled out several round circular collars. She knew those. Every Twiilek in the Galaxy knew those. They were Slave Collars. He attached one around her neck. She felt a sting as the needles on both sides punctured her neck. She refused to flinch or show any fear. She simply looked into his eyes with a bored look on her face. This seemed to infuriate him. He roughly attached collars on each of her wrists, ankles, and oddly around her waist. Smiling at his  _handiwork_ he straightened up and released her from the chair she was bound to. Shoving her he stood behind her as he steered up the four steps out of her prison cell.

He steered her left as they left the cell and they walked down the hallway in silence. Hera pretended to trip and fall every couple of feet in order to slow down the process so she could plan. It also added the benefit of angering her Capturer whose patience seemed to be on a short fuse. If he was angry enough she reasoned he could be easily distracted that and she might not even have to off herself he would probably do it soon. She had to force herself not to shudder when she remembered what Fulcrum had told her about the Inquisition. Fulcrum had been worried there would be an Inquisitor on Gorse. She had said they could pull things from your mind whether you allowed it or not. She sighed internally, she could not make it off this ship. It was dangerous. This was an old ship there were plenty of ways for her to make sure she did not make it to the transport. She would not leave this ship, she swore to herself.

As she was looking for anything volatile looking the hallway opened up into a big windowed room. She stopped to take it in in awe. It was a circular room with a glass dome overhead and open windows showing the deep dark space beyond. There were no ships or transports out the windows so this Ship must have been abandoned or very quiet. As she took in the room she realized this was not a Ship. It was a Station.

The oval room had grates on the floor that she could see up and down through. It seemed there were identical looking floors above and below them that seemed to go on for eternity. The room was lined with terminals and droids that were either decommissioned or moving around lazily. She could see several other masked robed personnel but only four on this level. The floor ended about fifty feet into the room and dropped into a well lit Chasm. She couldn't see the bottom from where she was standing but there had to be one, right? Across the empty circle in middle of the room was a bridge. The floor was made up of the same metal grate and she was pretty sure it probably could not hold a lot of weight. In the center of the bridge was a midway center with smaller and lighter looking Terminals. There was gray piping that went down the middle of the midway station and connecting to all the other midway stations above and below it.

He shoved her towards the bridge. She added two trips before they made it to the bridge. She gingerly put one foot on the bridge. It shook a little. As she was about to put her second foot on she heard dark chuckling behind her.

'So the brave nameless Twiilek is afraid of heights? That will look great in my report.' He continued to laugh as he shoved her forward again hitting her hard in the head in the process. She rolled her eyes. She was a pilot she wasn't afraid of heights, she lived for them. His arm had shifted to her neck above the collar and he was now steering her down the bridge choking her like an animal as she stumbled. She felt what little hope she had evaporate as her mind attacked her with cruel thoughts and doubt.

She would never be able to protect Kanan. She would give him up and he would be caught and crucified. Made an example of like so many others. She would have to watch him be tortured and killed because he was born special. She tried her best to blink her tears out of her eyes. She would not betray Kanan she tried to chant to herself. Her mind was tired of fighting it just wanted to rest. It sighed as it provided her gruesome images of her betraying Fulcrum, the Rebellion, and of course her beloved Kanan to the Empire. Their bodies were mixed with that of Wookies, Twiileks, Togrutans, and many other slaves. She closed her eyes as she tripped and landed face first on the platform. She would NOT betray them. She would die first. She would die before betraying Kanan. He was what made her world spin round. She had a ship and a roof over her head but he had given her a home and a place. Something she had not had since she had left her father's madness crusade.

She opened her eyes and felt her insides light up. This was what she needed. She was looking  _under_  the bridge. It was a long fall, but would it be a fatal fall? She thought. Her thoughts were interrupted when she saw past the depth of what was below her and she saw what it was housing. At the very bottom of the chasm was a generator.  _The generator,_ like the one that must be powering this whole space station. She knew the design, it was extremely fragile. If anything over 75 pounds hit it, it would combust and cause a chain reaction that could blow up half a planet. She smiled to herself. It was a good thing Kanan was always trying to fatten her up. She remembered when she had yelled at him because he had used extra credits to bake her a cake when she hit a hundred pounds. He had been so proud. She had let the issue go as soon as she tasted the cake, it was damn delicious. She felt her Prisoner tug her up by her Lekku muttering obscenities. She could feel her smile light up her face. She probably looked mad. That was okay. She was in control now. She had a plan.

The thought of leaving Kanan alone in the Universe again filled her with a sadness she hadn't expected but she couldnt let herself get caught. It was too dangerous for Kanan. His secret was too special. He was special. She wished she had told him more often how much she valued him. How much he made her world turn round. She loved him. She thought bitterly. A little too late.

She caused herself to trip and sway, each accidental misstep bringing them closer the side. She would stop them before they could get to Kanan. She would just be another nameless faceless body among millions of others in this war. She had done her last trip and she could literally put her foot over the edge of the bridge. They were nearing the midway station, she had one last calculated  _trip_ that would send her over the edge. She put her foot down to make her last trip when all of the lights went out.

The Inquisitior's hand bit into her arm until it stung and she could feel blood. He threw her to the ground and started to bark orders as the emergency lights flashed on giving a little light in the darkness. The generator below them glowed a dark deathly red. People and droids alike started yelling and loud bangs could be heard echoing through the dome above her head. Once he was done yelling he grabbed her by the Lekku and dragged her down to the middle of the Midway station where the pipe was. She refused to cry or scream as her body erupted in pain from her Lekku's abuse. Lekku's were one of the most sensitive parts on a Twiileks body.

Her captor looked at her with disgust then he tossed her against the pole bruising her back and causing her head to swim. He grabbed her left arm and pinned it under and behind her back using the Slave collar to chain her wrist to the pole. He procured another collar and chained her elbow. If she moved even an inch the wrong way she would snap her arm. He grabbed her right arm and bent it over her shoulder pinning it behind her back in the pipe the same way he did her left arm. Her finger tips were just brushing from opposite directions. She felt uncomfortably exposed. He knocked her head back twice into the pole making her head spin and leaving her dizzy and confused. He yanked her legs out until they were laying straight in front of her. He tied her down again by her knees and her ankles.

He looked down at her smiling; she was successfully chained to what she was realizing was an old fuel line. If she tried to scratch it, it could combust. Not in a way that would cause much damage but enough to probably knock her out. Based on his smug smile he knew this. He leaned into her making her extremely uncomfortable and whispered in her ear.

'Move and I will personally make sure your torture becomes more... physical once we board the transport.' He sneered before he swirled his long robes and stomping away. Red emergency lights flashed on the dark platform enough to give Hera a swirling headache. She could hear people rushing all around her but she couldn't move her arms. It was an odd configuration that left her little if any wiggle room. It was very smart. This hit on her head was making her see fuzzy things. She could have sworn she saw a flash of Kanan's armor two levels above her.

She closed her eyes trying to calm herself down so she could think of a way out of this mess. Her hallucinations became more vivid as someone untied her arms and whispered,

'Stay here little Hera. I'll be back. I need to clear the way out.'

She sighed at the hallucination. This was too much. She spoke to Fulcrum and Kanan in her hallucination. In her hallucination she told Kanan that she loved him. She had since she first met him when he was an unruly bartender.

'I'm scared you'll realize your worth and leave. But I'm also scared that you won't realize your worth. I'm so confused. What if you realize your worth and join the Empire? I can't loose you Kanan. I can't. I need you. I love you.' She whispered tears pouring down her face.

Slowly, as if in a dream she felt herself stand. What happened to her restraints? She opened her eyes. There was clearly some sort of fight going on. She could see droids firing at each other. She had no strength to fight, that much she knew. Any chance of her commandeering a ship or a shuttle out of here was slim to none. She had to remove herself from the equation though, what if she told them about Fulcrum or Kanan? She discarded the idea. She could never betray her Kanan. The Empire would never stop hunting him. She closed her eyes. She knew what she had to do. It was the logical thing. She had been preparing herself for it now she just had to do it.

_Kanan. Kanan. Kanan. Please forgive me._

The emergency lighting were still flickering. Its red hue making the black walls look eeven more ominous. Detachedly, she realized how close she was to the end of the platform. She needed to stop thinking about it and just do it before she lost her chance. For Kanan. For the Rebellion. For Kanan.

She closed her eyes and stumbled to the edge.

For Kanan.

For Love.

For Family.

She leapt.

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kanan is trying to rescue Hera without royally screwing everything up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, again thank you for your patience! I might take a break from Star Wars Rebels Fanfic to work on some Reylo (SW7) or Dramione (HP) fiction. Let me know what you think? Any requests for any fanfic?
> 
> Thanks for reading and liking! -Chefke

 

Kanan felt his entire life force screech to a death dropping stop. He felt himself go cold and what little life was in him drain into near nothingness. No. She wouldn't- She couldn't- but she had. He called out for her but she didn't hear him. He was too far from her to reach her with his body or the Force. He tried both.

'Hera! Hera! NO!' His voice cracked. She had tossed herself off of the bridge. His whole universe had jumped off that bridge. He could see some bright explosive looking engine at the bottom. If she hit it... He felt his breath catch and the force nudge at him. Like it was trying to tell him something without actually telling him. He reached out his arms to try and lift her but she was falling too fast and he was too far. He closed his eyes in concentration and was startled when he felt something hard whip into his palm. He opened them to find a grappling hook in his palm. Hera's grappling hook. It had been with his stuff he had retrieved in a storage locker in one of the first rooms he had raided on the Station.

He didn't even remember moving or when he shot the grapple gun and swung; all he could see and all he knew was one thing. Hera. Using a combination of physics and the Force he was able to slow her descent and hasten his. She slid into his open arms and he held her tight enough that it bit into her arms and she bled. She didn't even flinch. Her eyes were closed as they swung. He swung them both over the railing of a lower level and hoisted her gently over the railing and into his arms comfortably. She was unconscious but breathing. Shallow, but she was breathing. He set off down the hall calling Chopper on his way. He could feel the force literally smiling. Maybe they were the Force's version of an OTP? The Force knows it had saved the two of them enough times. She stirred groaning and shifting in his arms.

'It's me, Kanan. I'm here love. Your safe.' He murmured into her hair as he rushed down the halls trying not to jiggle her too much. Chopper was going to meet them with the ship in a hangar bay on the floor they were on. The two of them had already set enough explosives to blow a small planet up. Chopper was counting down in his ears and it was making him confused with the already confusing layout of the place. They did not have time to get lost.

As he rushed down the halls he cursed himself; Kanan's plan could not have gone worse. His first three attempts at cutting the power without cutting life support had been in vain and he had had to reset the entire system accidentally causing a two second blackout, which obviously didn't go unnoticed. He was such a bumbling idiot that the Patrolmen who probably never patrolled a day in their lives actually started patrolling. He was mid cursing himself for not bringing Chopper when he was spotted by two guards attempting to do their jobs in patrolling. Today was not their day. With little time to react, he aimed his blaster and blew the entire fuse successfully blacking out the whole ship. The confused guards were out cold before they had a chance to wonder what happened to the lights.

Apparently it had been too little time to think as well, because he had knocked out life support and artificial gravity. He had one breather on him but he wasn't sure how long it would last. He plugged himself into a computer terminal in a abandoned room and tried and failed to work on the life support problem. That system was too advanced for him so he radioed Chopper to work on life support. He moved on to work on the artificial gravity. This might be an Empire-run torture facility but there were still people on board who wouldn't make it off with both systems knocked out. He finished and moved out hefting two new barrel edged guns that he found in the room. One was slung across his back with Hera's things he had found and the other was balanced in his hands. It was definitely Mandolorian made. No doubt about it.

He was panicking and being sloppy. He had too much to lose and he was scared shitless. He knocked out two more patrolmen and stopped to clear his mind in another empty room. He blocked out Chopper for a full sixteen seconds and then steeled himself down the corridor. The oxygent levels were dropping and he had one oxygent mask. Hera. He needed to find Hera. He rushed down three more levels stealthier and without any incidents.

He was two corridors away when Chopper announced the return of the Life Support System. He was breathing heavily at this point and he welcomed the fresh air that was flooding the Station. Then it hit him, there were two corrdiors seperating him from Hera. He could feel her. He felt her presence through the force. It was very weak but it was there. He radioed Chop to prepare the Med Bay for her. He responded it was already prepped and ready. He moved.

The Force warned him about the male scaling the metal tubing above him before he dropped. Kanan swept to the left shooting off three explosive rounds as he slid behind a closed Cannister for cover. He heard one of his shots make contact with whomever was under the hood. He didn't see what he hit; but he heard an audible thump. He repositioned his gun, checked his armor, his map, and walked out slowly. His hooded friend was waiting clutching his side.

'You will never make it out of here alive Rebel.' The voice under the hood was unmistakably male with a slight Lower Coruscanti accent to it. Something he was clearly trying to get rid of. Not so easy to hide your roots. He would know. They were circling each other now. He was limping slightly although he doubted his injury would impair his ability to fight much.

'I don't doubt that.' He was calculating the clicks to the next cooridor. If he wasn't incapacitated he would have several clear shots at Kanan. 'But I can't let you have my girl.'

'Ahh... the Twiilek.'He spat. 'Did you pay a high price for her? I hope not not worth her weight in Bantha Fodder.'

He was goading him and he knew that and normally he would be enraged. However, he wasn't going to let his focus slip. Hera. Only Hera. That was all that was on his mind. 

'Your path to your ship is cut off and the escape pods have been cut loose. You have no where to go!' His voice was raspy and he coughed every so often. It must have been a good hit. He really liked this humongous barrel gun. He was glad he had two.

Kanan fired twice and the hooded thing backflipped and jumped until he was out of fire range. He made two more hits, his right arm and his left thigh in addition to what was looking like his abdomen. It was enough to send a regular person to a longterm medic facility. This guy just retreated still only limping slightly trying to gather his wits. He retreated behind a grouping of Databanks. For Kanan that was enough time for him to make it to Hera and this guy wouldn't have enough time to call for backup. The getting back part would be worrisome. He would need Chopper to do something about that. Kanan moved forward in attempt to slow him down further but he flipped backwards and started climbing back up the wall.

'Until next time Jedi Boy.' He winked at him and then he was gone. Startled Kanan almost tripped over his own feet. He hadn't used the Force even once! He ignored the panic that was rising in his throat, raised his gun, and went to search for his Hera. She was usually flickering in the force. He could barely feel her anymore. He slid the door open to the circular deck on that floor and he saw her. She was chained in some odd contortionist way to a metal piping unit behind her. She couldn't move even if she didn't look like every bone in her body was broken. Her eyes were black and swollen and her skin was the palest shade of green he had ever seen. Blood was streaming from her lips and her fingernails were... gone. He gently undid her straps and lifted her into his arms. Her smell was intoxicating but she was also barely breathing. He hugged her cold body close to him careful not to cause her anymore pain. Then he heard voices. Patrolmen. Damn it.

'Stay here love.' He whispered. He put her down gently and raced back to shoot whatever the hell was coming at them. He had just dispatched the last of them when he turned to see her fling herself from the side of the platform. It was like the horror of Order 66 again. Watching his loved ones and his entire world die.

 

Kanan snapped back to the present. They were approaching the hangar bay. She was still breathing but extremely shallow. She would need a bacta tank and an oxygen supplement as soon as they got on board. He radioed Chopper with more instructions. Chopper radioed back that there was something in the hangar bay waiting for him. He doubled back and went down four corridors. He could handle this cloaked guy on his own but he wouldn't risk Hera.

'Kanan. Kanan. Kanan.' Her voice was barely audible. Kanan held her tighter and started off down the hall. He whispered back reassuringly at her.

'Chopper exit strategy. Now.' He got a bunch of furious bleeps in response.

'Of course I have her. We wouldn't leave without her.'

Kanan's head was starting to buzz from the insanity of the plan. He quickly proceeded to the emergency pods. He had Chopper remotely access the Phantom right outside the docking bay so all the troops would look for him there. Meanwhile a cloaked Ghost was connected to the empty escape pods ports. They had anticipated them launching all of the escape pods. It was a solid plan. Chopper had opened the overhead compartment for them to slide into.

Chopper was flying by the side of the ship where the hangar bay was. He could see an intense firefight going on. Chopper had re-wired all the stationary droids there and they were fighting all the patrolmen. He could see the hooded thing getting onto what was clearly a high level Imperial Ship. He paused before he went into the ship and looked past their shields and directly at Kanan; his eyes promising they would meet again. Chopper recalled the Phantom that was shooting up the Hangar Bay. Once it was attached they took off and the Station realized it had been duped. The real fight began as their external Canons concentrated their fire on them. Chopper switched the shields from invisible to defensive.

'Chop! I don't care about fancy flying get us the hell in hyperspace!' He bleeped back furiously.

'What do you mean you need two minutes!? I can't strap Hera into the Medbay until the ship is done being rocked by fire!' There was a low Oh from Chopper. 

The next shock sent them careening off course and almost tossed Hera into a wall. He sank to his feet pinning Hera to the floor under him. He didn't know how long he would have and he couldn't risk her falling off the med bay table. He was mid thought when he heard the explosion. He could feel the shock wave in his bones as he held her pinned down to the floor. He held her for a solid two minutes while Chopper executed some of the finest piloting Kanan had ever witnessed. Once they were out of the danger zone; he stood up while Chopper gave a pre-hyperspace warning. He strode over to the Medbay and strapped Hera into the Medbay bed. He strapped her arms and legs into the bed knowing it would freak her out when she woke up. He sighed, he didn't really have a choice. She had some pretty bad wounds that needed not to be jostled any more than they already had been. He resigned himself to traumatizing her a little bit more and started to apply Bacta her more intensive wounds. Belatedly, he remembered she was having trouble breathing and attached a breathing aide to her mouth. He didn't remember how long he stood there but his legs ached and his sleep deprivation finally caught up with him. He remembered slipped to the ground by her bed and thinking the same possessive words over and over again.

_She's home. She's back._ _She's safe._

_She's home. She's back._ _She's safe._

_She's home. She's back._ _She's safe._

**_._ **

**_._ **

**_._ **

Kanan woke an hour later in hyperspace. Hera hand was still in his hand and she was sleeping soundly. He lifted himself and reapplied Bacta to him first and then to Hera. There were more med supplies and a bowl of warm soapy water next the bed. Chopper must have left it before powering down. They had another couple of hours in hyperspace. He had prepared for the worst before they left the planet's surface but she was strong and was healing rapidly. He carefully removed her blood stained Pilot's overalls and shirt. Her Lekku were hanging freely. Gently he rinsed each limb from blood and dirt scrubbing until she was clean. She didn't need any reminders when she woke up. He cleaned and bandaged each wound, listening to her gentle breathing. He was careful not to invade her privacy and kept her covered with a blanket. She was clean and alive. That was good enough for now.

He had finished with her and had managed to bandage his last couple of cuts up and started to wash his hands. He watched as the water spiraled down the drain. It was red. His hands were covered in Hera's blood and the sink filled with it. He felt his stomach churn and his throat close up. He collapsed in the chair next to her bed. She was still sleeping, but he had her, he hadn't been helpless this time. He had saved her. It was bothering him how much she reminded him of Master Bilaba. She was fiercely loyal and would give her life for him. Something he was sure he did not deserve. Watching her sleep; he knew in that moment that he would never touch alcohol again. He would never bet or visit dingy Cantinas. That part of his life was over. He was something of an adult now. He was going to do whatever she asked of him wholeheartedly and never complain. The rebellion was not something he would have seeked out on his own but he found what was important to her was suddenly important to him. Even if he did lose her he would continue her work because it was important to her. 

He started to stand when he felt and arm rest on his thigh.

'Please. Don't go.' She whispered. He looked down to see two pale green eyes looking up at him. He bent down and slowly ran a concerned hand down her cheek.

'Are you hungry? thirsty? In pain? What can I get you? What do you need?' She looked at him with an odd expression.

'You're safe Hera. On the Ghost. Which is also safe. And Chopper and Me.' He was babbling and had to forcibly close his mouth to stop himself from talking. He didn't know what to say. What do you say to someone who was willing to kill themselves for you? What do you say to someone who was tortured for days and wouldn't give up anything on you? He didn't deserve this kind of loyalty.

He was watching her with rising concern. Her pupils weren't dilated. That was good. He needed to make sure she was comfortable. She came first. He didn't even know where they were headed or if Fulcrum was notified. He didn't really care. He was never going to leave her side.

'I was so scared.' She was whispering as one heavily bandaged hand outstretched to him. Every digit had been broken, every nail pulled. It flooded him with pain terrifying enough to drown him. He reached his hand into hers and squeezed gently.

'I'm so sorry Hera. It should have been-'

'Kanan. I was so scared I would never see you again.' He was stunned into silence. He wasn't sure of her feelings for him. He knew he annoyed her but he was never sure. He didn't know maybe he was wrong right now. Did she feel the same way he did? It didn't matter. She was alive and that was enough. He felt his heart break into a million little pieces when she scooted over to make room for him on the bed.

He carefully climbed in next to her and laid down. Straightening his hand he intertwined his fingers with hers. They had just hopped out of Hyperspace and the ship jerked a bit. Hera hissed in pain.

'I think I should stick to flying from now on. It's a miracle my ship is one piece.' Wait till she saw the things he broke during his tantrums in her absence. She was going to kill him. He decided not to mention it now.

'I agree. I'll take the every day missions. We need you alive as our contact for the Fulcrum. Ok love?' She sighed.

'Are you grounding me?'

'Not permanently. Just till you're completely better. I don't want to aggravate anything.'

'And you can watch me better on the ship.' She sounded annoyed. Crap. Go for honesty, go for honesty.

'I can't lose you Hera Syndulla. I almost lost it. I didn't recognize myself without you. I need you. Please don't leave again.' She was silent and still for several moments. Then she nuzzled her head in his arm and he let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. .

'I'll think about it. Ok?' She whispered.

'Ok.'

'And Kanan...'

'Yeah?'

'We should talk about what happened in the bar.' He groaned he wasn't even sure what happened in the bar. She was furious with him but he hadn't actually been drinking. He had one drink but the rest had no alcohol.

'You were sober weren't you?' She sighed.

'For the most part. I had one alcoholic drink and it was diluted with water.' Her face colored and she looked ashamed. She squeezed her eyes shut and spoke so fast he almost missed it.

'I'm sorry. I know how hard Empire Day is for you and I didn't want you to fall back.' She gulped and opened her eyes. 'I didn't want you to regress to how you were when I first met you.'

He sighed. He was scared of that too but he would never do that on a mission. He hoped.

'Thank you for coming for me, especially after...' He almost laughed. She bothered him about drinking and she thought he wouldn't tear apart the galaxy looking for her?

'Did you doubt I would?'

'No, you're a Jedi. But it's nice to know that there's someone there for me.'

'Wouldn't your father?'

'I doubt it.'

'I would tear apart the galaxy for you Hera. Always and not just because I'm a Jedi.' She sat up slowly wincing several times until she was sitting crossed legged in front of him. He sat up and sat cross legged facing opposite her.

'Kanan.'

'Yes Hera-'

'Be quiet.'

'Okay.' He was smirking but he didn't know why. There were a lot of emotions flickering across her face. Too many to isolate any of them. She whispered so softly Kanan thought he had misheard.

'I am going to kiss you now. Is that okay?' Before she had a chance to lean forward he planted his hands on her face and swooped her into his lap kissing her soundly on the mouth. He knew he should probably be more romantic and take it slow but he was scared she would change her mind. He had been waiting too long for this.

Kissing Hera was something he dreamed about. Nightly. Nothing he dreamed of would have ever compared to this though. He felt his world change from a stark black and white to a vibrant and dazzling technicolor. His hands were searing hot as they slid up her arms pressing her close to him.

'Hera.' She paused for second and then opened her mouth but no words came out. She leaned up wincing as she went and placed both hands on his shoulders. She looked up at Kanan steeling herself to look dead in his eyes.

'I love you Kanan. I love you Kanan Jarrus since the first day we met and you saved me before I knew you were a Jedi.' He froze and moved in closer to her. She lifted her hands up to the side of his face as he caressed her lips with soft kisses that promised more later when her body wasn't ninety percent medication the other ten percent just broken.

'I know.' He whispered into her lips. 'I loved you first.'

* * *

**_Epilogue_ **

A hooded cloak was knelt before a hologram of a dark masked imposing figure. A figure that struck fear into the very souls of all the dared to look at him.

'Report Padawan.'

'My lord, there was a Jedi.'

'A Jedi, Starkiller?'

'Yes. I recognized him from my father's holo pictures on Kashyyk. Caleb Dume padawan to Depa Bilaba. She is deceased but her padawan's body was never recovered in the Temple mas-... death. He was protecting the Twiilek we picked up who was transferring data to the Rebellion. He was extremely protective of her. That may come in use one day.'

'Interesting.' He was silent for a moment. 'What data?'

'What little we have on Maul's whereabouts and the other on Cadets in different Imperial Academies. We know for sure that it had intel on promising students on Mandalore.'

'Well than we had better make sure none of our Cadets get any ideas about being recruited to fight in the Rebellion. See to this personally Starkiller. I will hold you responsible.' He bowed his head.

'Yes, Lord Vadar.'

The Transmission ended.


End file.
